Batch Process Your Way to a Pristine VO Track in MINUTES!

In the TV biz, turnarounds are fast.

What do you prioritize when you have tight deadline from AAF to Review?

My personal opinion: prioritize your VO.

Think of it like the conductor of the sonic orchestra – it guides the audience through the story, so it deserves to shine.

And here's the best part: you can breeze through the VO mix in a matter of minutes.

Setting the Stage: Why VO Reigns Supreme

Why edit and mix VO first? Simple – it's the narrative backbone. It carries the emotional weight and transitions between scenes.

In a perfect world, your VO sits comfortably on top of everything else, at a target loudness of -23.5 to -23LKFS in a -24LKFS mix.

This ensures it's clear and present but not overbearing.

Dialogue and interviews then weave around the VO, creating a consistent mix.

The Power of the Chain: Streamlining VO Processing

Now, let's talk speed.

My secret weapon? A custom VO processing chain in Izotope RX Connect. This all-in-one suite lets me address common VO issues with lightning speed.

The magic happens with a three-module chain:

1. Gentle Mouth De-Click: A subtle tap here eliminates those annoying clicks that pop up during mouth movements.

2. Targeted De-Plosives: This bad boy tackles those plosive consonants – think "P"s and "B"s – that can overpower the mix. We focus on the low-end frequencies (0-200hz) where the majority of plosives lie.

3. Leveler (Izotope RX Advanced Only): This gem (exclusive to the Advanced version) ensures consistent loudness across the VO. We set it to a target of -24LKFS with a 0.7 response time for micro-level adjustments. We also tweak the De-Esser to control sibilance at -6db and leave de-breath unchecked – VO breathing often adds a natural human element, in the edit any breaths before/after are cut out anyway. 

Batch Processing for the Win: Conquering Workflow Efficiency

Here's where things get exciting – speed and precision meet!

I select several VO clips within a close-ish time range, send them to RX Connect, and let the chain do its magic.

Once processed, I render them back into Pro Tools. Now comes the secret sauce – Strip Silence.  

This handy tool removes unwanted background noise between phrases. This allows you to process several VO lines at a time, while also knowing its in and out points while mixing.

My settings target anything quieter than -58db that lasts less than 500 milliseconds. With a little padding at the beginning and end of clips (94 milliseconds and 282 milliseconds respectively) to avoid cutting off valuable content, I hit "Strip" and voila! Cleaned-up VO, ready to go.

Rinse and repeat for the next batch, and soon you'll have a pristine, consistent VO track ready to guide your audience through your masterpiece.

Now, I did mention you want the VO to sit just slightly above everything else. There’s a couple of ways to achieve that. In RX’s Leveler, you can set the LUFS target to -23.5/-23. Or, if you have a VO chain, in the last inserted plugin, boost the output by 0.5-1db, or raise the track's volume by 0.5-1db.

Try it out next time!